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A glimpse into a world where everything is possible for the rulers, because the ruled do all the work: This sounds enchanting, and so Behind the Throne proves to be...The author has a wry humor and a way with a phrase.
— Wall Street Journal
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Charmingly erudite...Like a seasoned tour guide, Tinniswood keeps us moving through chambers of wonders, from the Elizabethan to the modern era...Tinniswood is both a careful scholar and a nimble writer.
— Washington Post
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Shrewdly observed and engagingly written...A cracking read, packed full of stories which Tinniswood relates with verve and wit.
— Spectator (UK)
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Tinniswood (The Long Weekend) explores the inner workings of the well-oiled machine that is the household, servants, and monarchy of Britain...A masterpiece of history that reads like a novel; a true delight.
— Library Journal (starred review)
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[Tinniswood] amply, entertainingly, compellingly succeeds in making the case that when it comes to British royalty, it takes a village to make a monarch.
— New York Journal of Books
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[Tinniswood] displays a knack for uncovering the absurd and delightful. A wit borne of a deep intimacy with his subject shows through. It all has the effect of bringing the monarchy down to earth.
— New York Times Book Review
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[A] juicy new domestic history of the royal household...Tinniswood's magpie narrative is...about boundaries: the walls, literal and metaphorical, that separate monarchs from their people.
— Guardian
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Fascinating...Never overly deferential, but humorous and distantly respectful. Our royals are human beings after all...Behind the Throne is a wonderfully entertaining account of life through five centuries of royal households.
— Sunday Times
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Behind the Throne, erudite and amusing, bulges with colourful scenes of barely managed chaos at court.
— Times
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[A] juicy new domestic history of the royal household...Delicious.
— Observer
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This is the most interesting and informative book on the British royalty for many years.
— Literary Review
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An intimate and entertaining look at the private lives of monarchs from Elizabeth I to the current occupants of Buckingham Palace...Deft, zesty social history.
— Kirkus—Kirkus
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Tinniswood is a wry storyteller.
— Baton Rouge Advocate
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Think of Behind the Throne as Downton Abbey meets The Tudors, with a dash of Victoria and a smidgen of The Crown thrown in.
— Winnipeg Free Press
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Well-researched and often entertaining...Devoted watchers of The Crown will especially enjoy the nimble analysis of both the narcissistic Edward VIII's brief reign and Princess Margaret's doomed romance...Utilizing a Downton Abbey approach, this enlightening narrative allows the royal family mystique to disappear just a little.
— Publishers Weekly
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Superb.
— New Criterion
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An enjoyable and lively account of the British royal household from Elizabeth I to Elizabeth II.
— Choice
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A lively, engaging, and endlessly fascinating account of life behind closed doors at the English court. Exploring five centuries of royal service--from Elizabeth I to her modern day namesake--this is a must-read for all fans of British royal history.
— Tracy Borman, author of The Private Lives of the Tudors
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Both fun and scholarly, this is a back-stage, back-stairs, sometimes backside history of England that focuses on the seamy-side of power, the sights you weren't intended to see and the stories you weren't supposed to hear. Savor it like a good gossip column.
— David Starkey, author of Elizabeth: The Struggle for the Throne and Six Wives: The Queens of Henry VIII
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Tinniswood's riveting overview of 500 years of the men and women who made the monarchy shows what has changed - and what hasn't. From the courtiers who handled foreign diplomats for James I to the chauffeurs who drove Edward VII, the first royal motorist, the delight is in the detail.
— Sarah Gristwood, author of Game of Queens and Elizabeth: The Queen and the Crown
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Behind the Throne is so much fun it's almost a guilty pleasure. Adrian Tinniswood provides an utterly fascinating behind-the-scenes look at the British monarchy, from the realities of the royal chamber pot to bedchamber politics.
— Amanda Foreman, author of Georgiana: Duchess of Devonshire
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Meticulously researched, rich in detail and hugely entertaining, Behind The Throne is an evocative feast of royal history, from the first Elizabeth to the present, at its page-turning best. From a master historian and story-teller, it is an absolute must for anyone interested in the British monarchy, past and present, and for any self-respecting history lover. A book I only wish I had written, I cannot recommend it highly enough.
— Christopher Warwick, royal biographer and historian